Vending Placement

Vending placement is something that we all should think about. It can mean the difference between you owning a thriving vending company or a company that may end up closing its doors.

It is the number one problem most start up vending companies will face in the early days. You are asking how do I know? Well letís just say in the early going I made a lot of mistakes. I also watched many other new startup companies make the same mistakes I did.

What To Watch For

Most of your more profitable accounts will be inside a city where you will have many competitors. Some that come to mind are caterers, convenience stores, grocery stores, fast food restaurants and mobile catering.

The further away your customer sets from the above list of competitors the more profitable it will be. When you are talking with your prospective customer it is a good idea to get an idea if they are using any caterers.

Many will have a company-sponsored dinner a few times a year but if they are doing this weekly or daily it will definitely cut into your sales.

Another thing I always want to know is how long are their breaks and lunch times. That will make a big difference on how many will go out to eat.

Some companies restrict employees from leaving the premises during the breaks and lunches. That is a big plus to the vender.

Blue Collar Versus Office

I have had both on my routes and they both can be profitable. The blue-collar worker is the account I want if I have a choice. They will normally have more men employees and men will just naturally eat more from a vending machine.

There is a mindset with office workers they want as much or more than the blue collar worker and donít eat as much. Offices are more inclined to solicit caterers to provide food on a daily basis. On average the office will have many more parties on company time than the blue-collar factories.

The offices are more demanding than a factory, which is another factor you will want to consider.

Age Of Employees

The age of the average employee is another factor you should look at when making a proposal. The younger employees have a tendency not to carry their lunch to work with them. This will definitely increase sales from your cold food machines.

Young males have a tendency to eat more than young females. A young female will watch her weight closer on average than a young male.

Size Of Location

The number of employees will always be a big contributing factor when you are thinking about making a proposal for a companyís business. If I am going to provide a full line of equipment for a prospective customer (cold food, snack, coffee, drinks and bill changers) I want at least 100 blue-collar workers or close to 200 office employees.

If you want to run some numbers on an account before supplying them with vending equipment, a good rule of thumb for sales per week is $6.00 per employee on the high side and down to $3.00 per employee on the low side.

Under 100 Blue Collar Employees

If you are looking at fewer than 100 blue collar employees at a location donít offer them a cold food machine. The same would go for less than 200 employees in an office setting.

Summary

It is very tempting to set up accounts with equipment that they donít deserve according to this article. The thing I would like you to think about is the payments at the bank. The banker in most cases is relying on you to make wise business decisions.

He/she will expect the payments to be made on or before the due date. If you stick close to the guidelines in this article you will be in good standing at your bank. If you step too far out of the guidelines it could get rough.

Resist the temptation to set up accounts that do not fit into the guidelines. After all, you are a business man/woman and it is up to you to set the guidelines that you are willing to follow not the customers. Just keep in mind whose name is on the note at the bank.